Tariff war in the Trump camp!

2026-02-23 - 20:32

A recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, stating that the authority to impose taxes and tariffs belongs to the U.S. Congress, has made Trump furious. The decision was reached with a majority vote of six members in the nine-member Supreme Court. The ruling also means the approval of a previous decision made in the same direction by the U.S. Court of International Trade. The lawsuits filed against Trump's tariffs had been combined and brought before the Supreme Court. The three liberal justices of the court were nominated by Democratic Presidents, while the six conservative justices were nominated by Republican Presidents. Three of the court's justices were appointed during Trump's term. In the latest case regarding tariffs, it was extremely noteworthy that the two conservative justices chosen by Trump sided with the liberal members. The conservative justices, consisting of six members, control the majority in the Supreme Court. An analysis titled "The Religion of Supreme Court Justices," published on the website of the public research company GALLUP on April 8, 2022, under the signature of Frank Newport, stated that the six conservative justices are Catholic, while two of the liberal members are Protestant and one is Jewish. The Supreme Court's decision allowed mainstream Republicans, who oppose additional tariffs, to breathe a sigh of relief. Senator Mitch McConnell, who had long served as the Republican leader in the Senate, said in a statement, "Today, the Supreme Court reaffirmed an authority that has belonged to Congress for centuries." Republican Senator Rand Paul, known as a "libertarian conservative," was also among those applauding the Supreme Court's decision. In a ruling last year, the International Trade Court decided that Trump's tariffs had no legal basis. One judge on the three-member court had been appointed by Trump. Trump held Leonard Leo, a leader of the conservative lawyers' organization called the "Federalist Society," responsible for the judge he himself appointed turning against him. In statements made on his social media account, calling Leonard Leo "a total creep," Trump said the "Federalist Society" led him astray in its early days. Trump's senior policy advisor, Stephen Miller, said in an interview with CNN, "We will no longer use the Federalist Society for judicial appointments." Leonard Leo, prominent for his Catholic-conservative identity, used the "Federalist Society" organization as a pool for federal judicial candidates for many years. During his 2016 election campaign, Trump himself had said, "We're going to have great judges, conservative, all picked by the Federalist Society." Thus, Trump and the "Federalist Society" had become allies. Leonard Leo played a leading role in the nomination of conservatives to the Supreme Court and in the Senate confirmation processes for these nominees. Trump, in turn, selected names from Leonard Leo's list as nominees for vacant seats on the Supreme Court. Leo controls significant funds to ensure that federal judiciary members are chosen from among Catholic legal professionals. The financial contributions made by the Koch family, donors to the Republicans, as well as Leonard Leo, to the organization called the "New Civil Liberties Alliance (NCLA)," which supported and intervened in the lawsuits against additional tariffs, represent a significant rift in Trump's grand coalition. Many staunch pro-Israel billionaires, led by Bill Ackman—who quickly shifted his support to Trump in the 2024 elections, finding former President Joe Biden's support for Israel insufficient—are joining Republicans like Leonard Leo in the tariff wars. Leonard Leo also played a significant role in the Supreme Court's decision to overturn the federal right to abortion. Leo and the Trumpists are allies in the "culture wars" between conservatives and liberals. Taxes and financial regulations, however, are not part of this alliance. Mainstream conservative Republicans have long opposed government regulations on free trade. They also view Trump's additional tariffs as new taxes imposed on American businesses. The hefty tax cuts for large corporations during Trump's first presidential term, on the other hand, had greatly pleased the same group. These tax cuts were a result of an agreement between Trump and then-Senate Majority Leader, Republican Mitch McConnell. The Supreme Court's recent decision has sparked a fight between Trump and his allies in the Republican camp. Trump has announced that he will not support Republican legislators who voted for bills blocking additional tariffs in the midterm elections to be held in November.